Of
the worlds 6 billion people, more than 1.2 billion
live on less than $1 a day. Two billion more people are
only marginally better off.

About
60 percent of the people living on less than $1 a day
live in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

In
high-income countries, farmersmen and womenmake
up less than 6 percent of the workforce, while in low-
and middle-income countries combined, they represent nearly
60 percent of all workers.

Developing
countries account for almost $1 out of every $4 that industrial
countries earn from their exports.

Map.

GNP
per Capita

Gross
national product (GNP) per capita is the dollar value of
a countrys final output of goods
and services in a year, divided by its population. It
reflects the average income of a countrys citizens.
Countries with a GNP
per capita in 1998 of $9,361 or more are described as
high income,
between $761 and $9,360 as middle
income, and $760 or less as low
income.

What
GNP per capita shows

GNP
per capita shows what part of a countrys GNP each
person would have if this GNP were divided equally.
Knowing a countrys GNP per capita is a good first
step toward understanding the countrys economic strengths
and needs, as well as the general standard of living enjoyed
by the average citizen. A countrys GNP per capita
tends to be closely linked with other indicators that measure
the social, economic, and environmental well-being of the
country and its people. For example, generally people living
in countries with higher GNP per capita tend to have longer
life expectancies,
higher literacy rates,
better access to
safe water, and lower
infant mortality rates.